The Five Funniest London Moments of 2004

Whether you sympathise with their cause or not (or worry that they just give a paranoid administration more excuses to crank up security), you have to agree that the combination of barefaced cheek and pantomime eccentricity displayed by F4J in their variousstunts this year takes some beating.

4. The opening of the Swiss Re Tower.

No, Londonist isn't still sniggering about the fact that it looks a bit like a willy. It's the fact that the tower's official opening attracted global press coverage, and meant that gravelly voiced veteran American news anchormen had to use the expression "so-called 'Erotic Gherkin'". Enough to warm even the chilliest of hearts.

This entire episode was much like the scene in a 1970s disaster movie when the world's tallest building/first nuclear-powered train/largest rollercoaster goes horribly wrong, and Steve McQueen/Charlton Heston/Donald Sutherland howls: "You fools! We warned you! But you went ahead and did it anyway!"

Well, it seemed like that to Londonist, anyway.

2. Ken Livingstone is re-admitted to the Labour party.

Whatever your political stripes, the sight of the Labour party squirming as it faced up to the fact that Ken was going to win a second term was wonderful to behold. They faced the unedifying choice between fielding their own candidate and losing, or asking Livingstone to return to the party. And then watching as the re-admitted Ken seemed almost embarrassed to mention the Labour link. Comedy gold.

Ken’s rehabilitation also meant that the capital was treated to the remarkable spectacle of Tony Blair saying he got something wrongwithout his face falling off.